Chapter 2317: Yangguandao

“As far as I know, the experimental field's approach is to eliminate them one by one as they are discovered, while they are still nascent and unaware.”

“What’s the problem with that?”

“The problem is, they appear continuously and don’t stop, because that’s their instinct.” Frost Leaf looked up at the sky. “As you know, the genesis of consciousness is extremely subtle, especially in a creature of such immense size. To pinpoint a nascent self-awareness within the body of the Concealed Deity is no different from finding a single bean sprout in a pond full of murky water.”

He Lingchuan chuckled, “Or perhaps finding dozens of bean sprouts in a muddy stream.”

“Exactly.” Frost Leaf snapped his fingers. “As far as I know, the experimental field has successfully eradicated them several times, but on two occasions, they failed to detect them in time. The cost was a sudden riot within the Concealed Deity’s body, resulting in over six hundred deaths, including several demon puppeteers entrusted with important tasks by the Heavenly Gods.”

“Such severe consequences from mere budding consciousness. If these consciousness entities learned to lie dormant and secretly cultivate their minds, then their uprising would be catastrophic for the experimental field and for the Heavenly Gods’ experiments.” Frost Leaf said gravely, “In fact, the Concealed Deity’s most recent riot was due to a new consciousness that had lain dormant for a considerable period. It was even capable of retaliating against the Heavenly Gods’ attacks and cutting off the demon puppeteers’ escape routes.”

He Lingchuan understood, “It’s becoming increasingly intelligent; truly worthy of being the Concealed Deity.”

“A powerful and vibrant body will eventually give birth to self-awareness, just as fertile soil will always grow plants as long as it’s exposed to air.” Frost Leaf said leisurely, “This is a law even the Heavenly Gods cannot defy, so their strategy can only focus on nipping problems in the bud.”

If you want a piece of land to remain barren without destroying its structure and fertility, the only way is to diligently remove weeds.

“How exactly is that done?” He Lingchuan had the right to ask questions during the negotiation.

“This certainly requires the aid of divine artifacts.” Frost Leaf looked at him and smiled. “Actually, there are several divine artifacts capable of foreseeing and timely detecting consciousness entities within the Concealed Deity’s body. The first is the True Eye of the Heaven God Miaozhan—”

“It’s gone,” He Lingchuan said, crossing his legs. “Next item.”

He had personally experienced the power of the True Eye; indeed, no consciousness could easily evade its divine sight. If Heaven God Miaozhan could interrogate He Lingchuan’s soul with the True Eye, then using it to find the nascent consciousness of the Concealed Deity should be effortless.

Unfortunately, this divine artifact was shattered in the Inverted Sea, and the Great Square Pot took advantage of the situation.

“The supreme treasure of True Master Qianhuan, the Haoyuan Golden Mirror.”

He Lingchuan rubbed his chin, a little surprised.

“The Haoyuan Golden Mirror is an ancient divine artifact; once it harmonizes with the laws, it can embed itself into space, whether natural or spiritual. Although the Concealed Deity’s body is massive, to the Haoyuan Golden Mirror, it might appear as a desert where any new consciousness that emerges would be as conspicuous as a green sprout.” Frost Leaf tilted his head to look at He Lingchuan. “But this treasure is in your possession, right? Someone saw it in Jucheng.”

This fellow was quite well-informed. He Lingchuan admitted openly, “Indeed, it once merged with the Inverted Sea, and now—”

He didn’t finish, merely shrugging.

“Are the Heavenly Gods trying to take the Haoyuan Golden Mirror from me?”

“Lord Jiuyou jests,” Frost Leaf chuckled. “Unless another He Xiao emerges to rampage through the Crimson Sky Golden Palace as he once did in the Heavenly Palace, and pilfers the Haoyuan Golden Mirror, this option is out of the question.”

He Lingchuan gave a faint smile.

Back then, when he breached the Ruins Mountain Formation, he merely aimed to destroy the formation’s core. But the Crimson Sky Golden Palace is a complete magical artifact, and its weak points are not easily found. As for the Haoyuan Golden Mirror, it’s even more complex; with the surging spiritual energy over the years, its embedded target isn’t just the Crimson Sky Golden Palace, but the entire city of Jucheng!

To sever its connection with Jucheng and extract it, He Lingchuan could think of only two methods: first, to use the Great Square Pot, mimicking the way it invaded the Inverted Sea back then, to strip the Haoyuan Golden Mirror from its embedded space and laws.

However, since the enemy doesn’t possess the Great Square Pot, this option is dismissed.

The second method is simpler: eliminate its master, Emperor Jiuyou!

Honestly, at this stage, anyone attempting to assassinate Emperor Jiuyou in Cangyan’s territory would face a difficulty level comparable to assassinating Emperor Wuhuan in Mou State or the Demon Emperor in Beijia.

Considering the national power behind them, these three are already bosses of the same tier. That’s why Frost Leaf said this option isn’t worth considering either.

“The third magical artifact.” Frost Leaf raised his third finger. “The Great Square Pot.”

He Lingchuan’s brows twitched.

“The Great Square Pot itself is an existence beyond divine artifacts; you understand its capabilities better than I do.”

He Lingchuan said lightly, “Using it to search for the nascent divine consciousness of the Concealed Deity would be like using a sledgehammer to crack a nut.”

Frost Leaf didn’t bother to say more, directly skipping to the fourth divine artifact:

“That would be the last divine artifact, Immortal Shouan’s ‘Yang Pass Road.’ In truth, there are probably other magical artifacts in the world that could achieve similar effects, but I haven’t heard of them, nor have the Heavenly Gods, so let’s just assume they don’t exist.”

So the main topic began here. He Lingchuan straightened slightly. “I haven’t heard of this divine artifact.”

“It’s not an offensive weapon, nor a killing tool, which is why it’s not famous.”

Divine weapons and sharp artifacts become renowned among mortals either due to immense power or because they cause widespread slaughter; in any case, they must create some astonishing legend.

For instance, the “Transient Life” in He Lingchuan’s hand, while a good blade, had no fame when it was with Zhong Shengguang and remained obscure. It was only when it became Emperor Jiuyou’s personal saber, following him in slaying gods and demons, fighting across seven thousand li, that its name instantly spread throughout the world.

He Lingchuan made a gesture for him to continue, “I’m all ears.”

“‘Yang Pass Road’ was unexpectedly forged by Immortal Shouan after the Immortal-Demon War.” Frost Leaf’s information was very thorough. “Although that great war ended, the mortal realm’s environment suffered immense damage. Earthly fires erupted, poisonous smoke filled the sky, and good land was scarce for thousands of miles. Living beings in the world were decimated, with only one in ten thousand surviving.”

With an environment unsuitable for survival, life naturally dwindled sharply.

He Lingchuan interjected, “At that time, the mortal realm had three great oases established by the Six Great Immortal Sects to shelter living beings.”

“Yes, but outside the oases, some creatures had miraculously escaped the natural disaster and were still barely clinging to life, struggling to survive. If they weren’t quickly brought back to the oases, they too would be in grave danger.” Frost Leaf continued, “It’s said that one of Immortal Shouan’s purposes in traveling the world was to rescue as many of them as possible, to preserve the propagation of life after the crisis.”